Gilded Age, populism, Westward expansion

13th Amendment

Abolished slavery in 1865.

14th Amendment

Granted citizenship to all born in the U.S. and provided equal protection under the law in 1868.

15th Amendment

Gave African American men the right to vote in 1870.

16th Amendment

Allowed the federal government to collect income tax in 1913.

17th Amendment

Established direct election of U.S. Senators in 1913.

18th Amendment

Prohibited alcohol (Prohibition) in 1920.

19th Amendment

Granted women the right to vote in 1920.

Muckrakers

Investigative journalists exposing corruption during the Progressive Era.

Homestead Act

Gave settlers 160 acres of free land in 1862.

Transcontinental Railroad

Connected the East & West coasts, completed in 1869.

Credit Mobilier Scandal

Corruption involving Union Pacific and a fake construction company.

Battles of Little Bighorn

Native American victory led by Sitting Bull versus Custer in 1876.

Dawes Act

Tried to assimilate Native Americans by breaking up tribal land in 1887.

Assimilation

Erasing Native culture to fit white American norms.

Wounded Knee

Massacre of Lakota Sioux in 1890; marked the end of Indian resistance.

People's Party (Populists)

Political movement advocating for farmers' rights and reforms.

Wabash v. Illinois

1886 case that limited states' ability to regulate railroads.

Interstate Commerce Act

Regulated railroad rates and created the Interstate Commerce Commission in 1887.

James A. Garfield

President assassinated by a disgruntled office seeker in 1881.

Mugwumps

Republicans who supported the Democratic candidate Cleveland due to corruption.

Pendleton Civil Service Act

Created a merit-based system for government jobs in 1883.

Political Machine

An organized group controlling city politics in exchange for votes.

William 'Boss' Tweed

Infamous political boss of Tammany Hall in NYC.

Rock Springs Massacre

Anti-Chinese riot in Wyoming in 1885, resulting in many deaths.

Chinese Exclusion Act

Banned Chinese immigration in 1882.

Nativism

Belief that native-born Americans were superior to immigrants.

Free Coinage of Silver

Populist demand to inflate money supply to assist farmers.

Trust

Companies working together to control a market, often illegally.

Economies of Scale

Larger production results in lower cost per unit.

Monopoly

One company controls an entire industry.

Gilded Age

Period of rapid growth and wealth inequality in the late 1800s.

Tenements

Crowded, unsafe apartments in urban slums.

Urbanization

Growth and expansion of cities.

Unions

Workers' organizations formed to improve pay and working conditions.

Pinkertons

Private security hired to break up labor strikes.